Magnetic sweeper



May 24, 1 955 R. c. HOFF MAGNETIC SWEEPER 2 She ets-Sheet 1 Filed June 25, 1953 ||||llll-lilllmlmnm INVENTOR.

RONALD .c. HOFF UM %45W May 24, 1955 R. c. HOFF 2,709,002

MAGNETIC SWEEPER Filed June 23, 195: 2 Sheets-Shet 2 INVENTOR.

RONALD G. HOFF United States Patent MAGNETIC SWEEPER Ronald C. Hoff, Erie, Pa., assignor to Eriez Manufacturing Company, Erie, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application June 23, 1953, Serial No. 363,641

12 Claims. (Cl. 209-215) This invention relates generally to magnetic devices and more particularly to magnetic sweepers for picking up scrap and miscellaneous pieces of magnetic material such as pins, staples, tacks, bolts, nuts, etc. from parking lots, sewing rooms, factories, and other places where such material is objectionable.

In magnetic sweepers and similar devices made according to previous designs and of which I am familiar, the sweeping units were awkward to handle due to heavy long handles which were mounted to pivot on the frame of the sweeper. Further, the effective length of the magnet in the sweeper was a relatively small percentage of the over-all width of the sweeper due to the structure of the wheels and framework. Previously manufactured sweepers have been difficult to clean because it was necessary that the sweeper be picked up, carried to a container, and the iron which collected on the magnetic element be scraped off, either by hand. or by a mechanical scraper. The difficulty incurred in removing the iron was often complicated by the type of iron which had been collected. Because of the awkward design of the frame of the previous sweepers and the handles, it was very difiicult to maneuver the sweeper to remove the iron. It was necessary to lift up the entire sweeper and place it over a container to clean it, it was not practical to carry a tramp iron receiving pan on the frame of the sweeper, and the operation of cleaning had to be per formed frequently, thus making it very inconvenient to use in previous types of sweepers.

It is, accordingly, an object of my invention to overcome the above and other defects in magnetic sweeping devices and more particularly it is an object to provide a magnetic sweeper which will be simple in construction, economical to manufacture, and simple and efficient m use.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel type of framework for a magnetic sweeper.

Another object of my invention is to provide a magnetic sweeper wherein the magnetic element can be readily removed therefrom for cleaning and for use as a manually magnetic unit.

A further object of the invention is to provide a magnetic sweeping device whereon an iron receiving tray can be carried and which will not need to be removed when the sweeping device is being cleaned.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel type of magnetic element in a magnetic sweeper.

With the above and other objects in view, the present invention consists of the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the form, size, proportions, and minor details of construction without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is a top view of a magnetic sweeper accord-' ing to my invention;

2,709,002 Patented May 24, 1955 Fig. 2 is a side view of the magnetic sweeper showing the iron receiving tray in place thereon;

Fig. 3 is a detailed view of the hub element of my invention;

Fig. 4 is a view of a tube end plug for use according to my invention;

Fig. 5 is an end view of the hub shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a side view of the end plug shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a side view of the magnetic tube having an iron removing canvas in place thereon; and

Fig. 8 is an end view of the tube shown in Fig. 7.

Now with more specific reference to the drawings, in Fig. l, I show a magnetic sweeper 1 having the magnetic element 2 and the framework 3 made up of the outer frame member 4 and inner frame member 5 held together by rivets 6 and 7 and having the handle 8 which has a threaded member 9 extending through a hole 10 and held in place by a nut 11 and a lock washer 12.

The hub member 13 extends through a hole 14 in the outer frame member 4 and through a hole 15 axially aligned with the hole 14 in the inner frame member 5. The hub member 13 has a flange 16 integral therewith and an axial hole 17 is drilled into one end thereof. The hub 13 has a knurled portion 35 which engages the hollow rivets 36 to attach the wheel 24 to the hub. A tube end plug 18 is held in the tube by means of pins 19 and has the reduced size section 20 which extends into the axial hole 17 in the hub member 13. The hub member 13 at one wheel is flattened as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5 and the end plugs on both ends of the tube are flattened or peened as shown in the dotted line in Fig. 4. The hub 13 may be pressed through the rivet 36 and the rivet 36 forces the side plates 37 into frictional engagement with the edges of the wheel 24. The wheel is similarly disposed on the hub 26. The end plug 27 is similar to the end plug 18 but it freely rotates in the hole in the hub 26. Therefore, when an operator grasps the handle 8 and pushes the magnetic sweeper along the ground or floor so that the wheels 24 and 25 engage the ground, the magnetic tube 2 will be rotated by the wheel 24 through the hub 13 and the end of the plug 18. The tube 2 is made up of the outer tube member 26a which is preferably made of brass, aluminum, or some other non-magnetic material and has the spaced permanent magnets 27:: which are preferably made of Alnico or similar strong permanent material. The permanent magnets 27a are held in spaced relation by wood plugs 28 and similar poles of the magnets are arranged adjacent each other so that the magnetic fields will be opposed. It has been discovered that by this arrangement, the magnets are much more effective in picking up scrap material in that the magnets act as individual units rather than as one long magnet.

By springing the ends of the frame members from each other, the end plug 18 can be removed from the hub 13 and end plug 27 can be removed from the hub 26, thereby making it very convenient to move the tube from the frame and hold it over a container to clean the iron therefrom or make use of the tube as a separate magnetic element by.itself without the frame. This operation can be accomplished without lifting the wheels 24 and 25 from the ground. 1

In Fig. 2, I show an iron receiving tray 30 held in place on the handle 8 by means of the clip 31 and on the-frame 3 by the clip 32, the clips being attached to the bottom of the iron tray. The tray is readily removable for cleaning under low objects and for emptying. Because of the fact that the tube can be removed from the frame members Without lifting the wheels from the ground, it is not necessary to remove the iron tray or disturb the contents thereof when the magnetic tube is being removed from the framework to be held over the tray to allow the magnetic material to be removed.

In Fig. 7, I. show the magnetic tube removed from the framework and my novel cleaning canvas disposed thereon. The cleaning cover is made up of magnetizable rods 40 which are disposed within the seams of the canvas cover 41. By providing these canvas covers over the ends of the magnetic tube, it is possible to clean the tube merely by removing the cover from it whereupon the scrap material will drop off into any container that is situated thereunder.

In Fig. 8, I show an end view of my novel cleaning device which is made up of the magnetizable rods 40 and the canvas member 41 held on the rods by the ends 42 of the canvas which are turned back on themselves and preferably stitched at 43. Obviously, the same effect could be had by substituting for the canvas a sheet of nonmagnetic metallic material having magnetizable material elements disposed in the ends or other parts of the material to hold the cleaning shield in place.

A cleaning device in the form of a washer made of rubber or similar flexible material is shown at 55) which can be slid across the tube to remove the iron collected thereon.

In the foregoing specification, I have set forth the invention in its preferred practical forms but I am aware that the structure shown is capable of modification within a range of equivalents without departing from the invention which is to be understood is broadly novel as is commensurate with the appended claims.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

l. A magnetic sweeper comprising a frame made of an outer and an inner frame member, said frame members being generally U-shaped, a handle attached to said frame members intermediate the ends thereof, axially aligned holes formed in the ends of each said U-shaped member, hubs disposed in spaced relation between each end of each U-shaped member and an adjacent end of a U-shaped member, a wheel disposed on each hub, and a cylindrically shaped permanent magnet supported between said hubs.

2. A magnetic sweeper comprising a frame made of an L outer and inner frame member, said frame members being generally U-shaped, a handle attached to said frame men bers intermediate the ends thereof, axially aligned holes formed in the ends of each said U-shaped member, a hub disposed in spaced relation between each end of each U-shaped member and an adjacent end of a U-shapezl member, a wheel disposed on each hub, and a cylindrically shaped permanent magnet supported between said hubs, one end of said cylindrically shaped magnet being attached to one hub to rotate with the wheel disposed on said hub.

3. A magnetic sweeper comprising a frame made of an outer and an inner frame member, said frame members being generally U-shaped, a handle attached to said frame members intermediate the ends thereof, axially aligned holes formed in the ends of each said U-shaped member, a hub disposed in spaced relation between each end of each U-shaped member and an adjacent end of a U-shaped member, a wheel disposed on each hub, a cylindrically shaped permanent magnet supported between said hubs, and a wiper ring slidably disposed on said cylindrically shaped magnet.

4. A magnetic sweeper comprising a frame made of an outer and an inner frame member, said frame members being generally U-shaped, a handle attached to said frame members intermediate the ends thereof, axially aligned holes formed in the ends of each said U-shaped member, a hub disposed in spaced relation between each end of each U-shaped member and an adjacent end of a U-shaped member, a wheel disposed on each hub, a

i cylindrically shaped permanent magnet supported between said hubs, one end of said cylindrically shaped magnet being attached to one hub to rotate with the wheel disposed on said hub, and a wiper ring slidably disposed on said cylindrically shaped magnet.

5. A magnetic sweeper comprising a frame made of an outer and an inner frame member, said frame members being generally U-shaped, a handle attached to said frame members intermediate the ends thereof, axially aligned holes formed in the ends of each said U-shaped member, a hub disposed in spaced relation between each end of each U-shaped member and an adjacent end of a U- shaped member, a wheel disposed on each hub, and a cylindrically shaped permanent magnet supported between said hubs, said U-shaped members being made of semirigid material whereby the ends thereof can be sprung outward for removal of the cylindrical magnet.

6. A magnetic sweeper comprising a frame made of an outer and an inner frame member, said frame members being generally U-shaped, a handle attached to said frame members intermediate the ends thereof, axially aligned holes formed in the ends of each said U-shaped member, a hub disposed in spaced relation between each end of each U-shapcd member and an adjacent end of a U- shaped member, a wheel disposed on each hub, a cylindrically shaped permanent magnet supported between said hubs, and means disposed around said cylindrical magnet to remove the collected iron therefrom.

7. A magnetic sweeper comprising a frame made of an outer and an inner frame member, said frame members being generally U-shaped, a handle attached to said frame members intermediate the ends thereof, axially aligned holes formed in the ends of each said U-shaped member, hubs disposed in spaced relation between each end of each U-shaped member and an adjacent end of a U- shaped member, a wheel disposed on each hub, and a cylindrically shaped permanent magnet supported between said hubs, the ends of said U-shaped members being movable outwardly to allow removal of said cylindrical member.

8. The sweeper recited in claim 1 wherein said hubs comprise a generally cylindrical portion extending through said holes, a flange on said cylindrical portion disposed between a wheel and one of said U-shaped members, and means supporting said magnet comprising a plug engaging a hole in said cylindrical portion, said plug attached to said magnet supporting means and rotatable therewith.

9. The sweeper recited in claim 1 wherein said cylindrical magnet is disposed in a non-magnetic tube whereby said magnet is supported on said hubs.

10. The sweeper recited in claim 1 wherein said magnet is supported in a non-magnetic tube and other like permanent magnets are provided in spaced relation to said permanent magnet, said magnets having like poles adjacent each other.

11. The sweeper recited in claim 10 wherein said permanent magnets have spacers made of magnetic material disposed between them.

12. The sweeper recited in claim 2 wherein one said hub is attached to rotate with one wheel by means of a non-circular hole in said wheel and a generally complementary end on the said hub engaging said hole.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

